(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to projectile launchers for underwater platforms, and deals more particularly with an improved firing assembly for a stored energy launcher system.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,210 an elastomeric bladder is provided as an energy storage device used in association with a projectile launch tube in the free flood compartment of a submarine hull. In this prior art system, a slide valve is provided to isolate the pressurized storage device from the breach end of the launch tube.
Problems associated with providing a slide valve to isolate the pressurized storage device are numerous. One major drawback is that the isolation valve must open very rapidly for the launch system to operate properly. Should the valve open slowly, the water in the energy storage device would become throttled through the valve, thereby limiting the flow rate through the system. The slide valve is also a very complex mechanical system. This, coupled with the fast opening times required, creates increasingly higher levels of structureborne vibrations. Lastly, energy must be added to the slide valve to cause it to operate (qenerally in the form of pressurized hydraulic fluid through power cylinders). Minimizing energy inputs to a system is generally known to minimize vibrations.